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Thursday, February 28, 2013

Sometimes it’s really
disheartening and hard to understand how in the 21st century, under
the weight of thick layers of ancient traditions and wrong beliefs, several
cultures around the world still fear social reforms and stubbornly resist change. But
having faith that some day these cultures will embrace the
change and keep working toward that goal is more than ever necessary: the
defense of women’s and children’s human rights everywhere in the world is the
cornerstone of an healthy and thriving society. In the African continent, so
often considered the "womb" of the human race, cultural prejudices
and gender discrimination have set insurmountable barriers on the way to
freedom and social justice, for far too long. Knowing that people like Rev. Karen Baldwin are relentlessly advocating
and working to raise awareness for this cause is for me a very heartwarming
thought: earlier this year I had the great pleasure to review (read here) her memoires Ruby’s
World: My Journey With Zulu, and today she is here on Mina's Bookshelf to share the
incredible journey of her life.

Q. Welcome to Mina's Bookshelf, Karen. Such a pleasure to have you here. From civil engineer, to
interfaith minister, writer, and ultimately human rights advocate and
inspirational speaker...quite a transformation. What inspired you to turn your
life around in such a radical way?

A. I knew from a very young age that my
life belonged to God. I planned to be a nun when I grew up!

But life happened: I fell in love,
married, developed a successful career in engineering, had a beautiful son, and
became a single mom. I was happy with my secular life for a long time. Then, shortly
after my son left home for college, I had a heart attack. During my ambulance
ride (the opening chapter of Ruby’s World) I realized that
avoiding my passion for ministry was literally breaking my heart. I could
either pursue the life I was meant for – or die.

Three years later, a few months
into my seminary training, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I was terrified,
angry that I had begun the transformation and still might die without fulfilling
my purpose. Thankfully, my treatment was successful … but cancer had upped the
ante. I had cheated death twice (heart attack and breast cancer are the two
biggest killers of women) and felt compelled to make my life count.

While I was recovering from my final
surgery, I had a series of dreams that sealed my destiny. My second book, Unlocking
the Dream, tells the story of the mysterious dreams that changed my
life forever by sending me alone to Africa.

The transformation continues to surprise
and thrill me. I wouldn’t give back even one minute of the adventure!

Q. After your amazing experience as the
first white western teacher among the rural Zulus, you have collected your
memoires in a though-provoking and pulse-pounding autobiography. What prompted
you to record those events in a book?

A. Honestly, I never
intended to write a book. But again, I had a dream in which I was told to “stop
talking about Africa and write the damn book!” It seemed ludicrous since I’d
never written anything longer than a term paper or sermon. But it wouldn’t
leave me alone. So I put on my big girl panties and wrote the book. And I’m
glad I did. The story of Ruby and the Zulus turned out to be much bigger than
me. Ruby’s
World has touched people in ways I never imagined.

Q. One of my favorite quotes from Ruby's World is, "My hope of making
a big difference may have been naive. Not trying would have been worse."
But was there ever a moment during your permanence in Zinti when you thought
that dangers and resistance to social reforms were just too overwhelming
for you?

A. There were plenty of times I was overwhelmed
by circumstances I couldn’t understand: the witch doctors control over the AIDS
epidemic, the school computers that stayed locked in the closet, Mhambi treating
me so differently than he treated Ruby, the radio talk-show host who openly
encouraged the caller to beat his wife, Ruby’s struggle over whether or not to
seek medical care for her niece who was bleeding to death. The list goes on and
on.

But I didn’t recognize the danger
that surrounded me until the incident at the coffin party. Being treated as Mr.
Bekwa’s property – having no control over my own movement – terrified me. That,
combined with the cameramen’s statement that if I made them mad they’d just as
soon “kill me as look at me” stripped away every last shred of my naïveté.

Q. As a
guest in the South African village, you committed to being an observer, not a
critic of their culture and traditions. How difficult was it to remain silent
in front of abominable social practices: infant scarification, use of black
magic to cure serious illnesses, gender discrimination, just to mention a few?

A. Holding my tongue was a huge
challenge. There were times I wanted to rally the women into a “Norma Rae”
revolt. But I did a pretty good job of maintaining observer status … until Ruby
and the school principal began starving the children. It broke my heart and my
self-control crumbled. I couldn’t just stand by and watch. It was the only time
I intentionally interfered in their culture, and I’m pretty sure giving the
apple to the little girl contributed to Ruby turning on me.

Q.What started as a humanitarian dream ended up
in a nightmare, abruptly and at the hands of the very people who warmly
welcomed you and hosted you. Was Ruby's betrayal the most heart-wrenching
aspect of your ordeal? Or leaving behind that unforgettable group of kids
without having the chance to explain the reason for your sudden departure?

A. Without a doubt, Ruby’s betrayal
stung – I didn’t see it coming. But through the process of being on tour with Ruby’s
World, I’ve spoken with many South Africans and have a better
understanding now of Ruby’s behavior. It was awful in the moment, but doesn’t
haunt me any more.

Leaving the kids without saying
good-bye was by far the most painful aspect of being run out. It still hurts. I
hate that they might think I abandoned them. Even worse, I suspect that Ruby
and the principal may have told the kids that it was their fault that I left.
I’d give anything to see these kids again and reassure them of my love and
concern for them.

Mhambi’s treatment of me the
morning I left also feels unresolved in my heart. I’d like to have a chance to
talk with him and hear his side of the story. I always felt like he respected
me and I believe if we could talk, he’d tell me the truth.

Q. Karen,
your dream of improving the life condition of a group of kids from a rural
village remained unfulfilled. But your experience, although brief, proved to be
a life changing one for you. Can you tell us how your journey in the heart of
traditional Africa put your life, your beliefs, your values in perspective? How
did you steer your life on a new and more meaningful course?

A. I certainly didn’t make a difference in these kids’ lives the way I expected.
But the South Africans I’ve met on tour are quick to assure me that my presence
made an impact. Every one of them tells me the same two things: I am lucky to
be alive, and I single-handedly upset the status quo between the races. Not the
difference I envisioned, but powerful nonetheless.

My forty-five days on the ground
in Africa changed my life forever. My story came full circle last year when the
Rural Women’s Movement of South Africa appointed me as their American
Ambassador. I now have the opportunity to work for the betterment of the very
women I lived with – a stunning turn of events.

My commitment to living life on
purpose is stronger than ever. And I’m convinced that improving the lot of
women and children is the key to healing the world. I recently became
affiliated with the UN Women and look forward to collaborating with my new
colleagues.

I love my ministry as an advocate
for women and children!

Q. As the
American Ambassador for the Rural Women's Movement of South Africa you have
been invited to share your concerns in matter of violation of human rights at
the 57th Annual United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. Can you
tell us how the organization you represent operates and which particular issues
you will bring to the attention of the UN Commission?

A. I’m very excited about
representing rural Zulu women at the UN CSW. The Rural Women’s Movement of
South Africa was founded by Sizani Ngubane in 2000. They are a grassroots
organization that strives to empower women through economic development and
advocating for their legal rights. You can learn more about them here .

This year’s agenda for the UN CSW
is the elimination of violence against women. You can watch the program unfold here.

I’ll be addressing several key
issues that the rural women face: being sold into brutal “marriages,” AIDS,
starvation, and the effort to bring the rural women out of harsh tribal law and
into the justice system created by the post-Apartheid constitution.

These are exciting times of opportunity
and change … I hope your readers will share my journey by following the news on
my website .

Q. One last question, Karen. Social reform and justice
for women in South Africa: utopia or achievable goal?

A. Achievable!
Definitely! But at their pace, not mine.

That’s one of the
biggest lessons I learned: as an outsider, it’s impossible to drive social reform
and justice. There are plenty of rural women in South Africa who want the same progress
that I want for them. My job is not to lead their movement, but to offer the
help that they request.

It’s easy to
become frustrated by their setbacks and inconsistencies. It’s important to
remember though that women in our country were also slow to achieve equality.
The Zulu women are less than 20 years into their freedom from Apartheid … patience
and persistence are key!

Karen, thank you
so much for answering my questions. Your testimony is so invigorating and
inspiring. Ruby’s World: My Journey With
The Zulu is available on Amazon.
Rev. Baldwin would also love to hear from Mina's Bookshelf’s readers and share your
thoughts about gender equality and social
justice for women.Please visit her website, Facebook and Twitter
pages.

Middle aged and recent
divorcee Ellen McClarety decides to open a kringle bakery in Amelia, small town
Wisconsin: the rhythmic routine of running a shop and the heartwarming smell of
handmade goodness help Ellen to ease her mind and her worries. The simple
repetition of the rituals involved in the craft of the delicious Danish pastry
becomes for the former university secretary a creative outlet and a healing
mantra to escape the bitterness of her failed marriage and divorce.

“Perhaps the divorce would be the catalyst she needed to begin the life
she was meant to live.”

Ellen becomes romantically
involved with one of her customers, shy widower Henry Moon. Maybe the intensity
of her feelings for him doesn’t match the sweeping romance she experienced with
her more adventurous and unreliable ex-husband, but she will find in the quiet
man an unsuspected connection and, in the serendipity of their relationship, the
key to put the past behind her back once and for all.

Meanwhile her younger
sister, Lanie Taylor, juggles motherhood and a demanding career as a divorce
lawyer, not without doubts and concerns of her own: under the pressure of their
jobs and parenthood, Lanie and her husband Rob encounter a rough patch in their
marriage and they both start wondering when they will ever give themselves free
license to live their lives fully. Both Ellen and Lanie long for their deceased
mother’s guidance, but through twists of fate and the intervention of
serendipity,they’ll find out that the
biggest piece of life advice their mother left for them is locked in the very
recipe to bake perfect kringles:

“It’s all about balance, […]. Just like in a good kringle, no one
ingredient should overwhelm another.”

In this ‘slow burn’ novel
by Wendy Francis, the traditional
Danish pastry becomes the metaphor of a perfect life and, as it usually happens
when the setting of a novel is a quaint little town, the small community with
its charming environment is a character in itself. In Three Good Things events unfold at a
very languid pace and now and then the narration shifts its focus between Lanie’s
and Ellen’s story threads, offering a very placid portrait of two women at a
turning point in their lives. I wouldn’t classify Francis’ debut novel as fluffy chick
lit, for the saving grace of this slow-paced and sometimes contrived storyline
is in the final plot twist. Overall, this delicate confection was a
satisfactory read.

Kate Alexander is affected
by retrograde amnesia. A car accident had landed her in a coma eighteen months before: when she woke up in a Dallas hospital, she had no memory whatsoever of the
moment when her Mercedes was reduced to a lump of twisted metal.What is worse, the head trauma has damaged
her long-term memory, so she doesn’t recollect anything about her seven year
marriage to doctor Jake Alexander or about their four year old son. In the months
following that accident she had to rely on her husband to fill in the huge gaps
of her memory loss. When Jake dies in a plane crash, Kate finds evidence (among
some of his papers locked in a drawer) that he had lied to her about her
identity. Not only her coma had lasted three years instead of a few weeks, she also
had been treated in a nursing home in San Francisco (not in Dallas), and
apparently she has a family in California, a nine year old daughter and a
pharmaceutical tycoon husband. Reconstructive surgery has slightly modified the
look of her face and her name is different, but when she moves to San Francisco
to conduct some researches on her past, she uncovers a truth that is more
confusing that comforting: she is Annie Harrison, beloved wife of Ryan
Harrison, ruthless CEO of a pharmaceutical biotech giant. According to the
records, she tragically died in a plane crash five years earlier. Her body had
never been retrieved, almost certainly incinerated by the fire, but boarding
records and personal belongings had been the proof of her presence on the
airplane at the moment of the crash. Surviving the grief for the loss of her
wife had been particularly difficult for Ryan, the more so because she happened
to be pregnant when tragedy struck.

Despite the emotional connection
and physical attraction she experiences when she lays eyes on Ryan, Kate can
hardly accept the idea of being married to a cutthroat, money-hungry businessman
with the reputation of a heartless womanizer. The truth is that, since the
alleged death of his wife, the pharmaceutical tycoon has tried to dull the pain
of his tragic loss investing every ounce of energy in his job and shielding his
heart with countless, no-strings-attached and meaningless flirts. The memory of
his deceased wife and their daughter are the only things that keep him
grounded, so when he finds out that his wife actually survived the plane crash he is overwhelmed with joy but also devastated by Annie’s amnesia: seeing her
alive after five years of believing her dead and not being recognized hurts
like loosing her again. Her particular kind of amnesia has modified her
personality and behavior: Kate is different from the woman Annie Harrison used
to be. For this reason, she also lacks confidence in reconnecting with her past
and her husband. She is afraid that Ryan’s love for a woman who doesn’t exist
anymore won’t be revived. Despite her fears, Ryan falls in love with his wife all over again, not with a shadow of
the past but with the new woman Kate has blossomed into after the coma.

Elisabeth Naughton is popular among the
readers of paranormal romance for her acclaimed series inspired to the Greek
Argonaut myth (The Eternal Guardians), but it’s with this fine example of
romantic suspense that she’s rapidly climbing up the national book charts: her
contemporary novel Wait For Me is reaching the top ranks of The Wall
Street Journal and USA Today bestsellers lists and the reasons of its success
are evident at every turn of the page. Naughton’s riveting thriller revolves
around a pharmaceutical cover-up and it is consistently intriguing and solid
enough to keep you engaged from cover to cover. Its
appeal is intensified by the author’s good sense of drama (barely a dull moment
from page one to the mind-blowing finale), and strong focus on romantic involvement and emotional conflict of the lead couple. All in all,
a very gratifying read.

Monday, February 11, 2013

Reuben Golding, golden boy and young reporter for the San Francisco
Observer, comes from a very wealthy family: his father is a retired
professor with a taste for poetry, his mother is a high-profile
physician, his older brother a priest, his girlfriend a successful
attorney. He got his job at the newspaper thanks to his parents’
influential connections and, although a very talented writer and new
promise in the journalistic field, Reuben thinks he hasn’t achieved
anything outstanding in his life, no particular talent or gift to speak
of unlike the rest of his family. He is writing an article about a huge
and beautiful estate located in a remote area of Northern California:
the Nideck property, a splendid mansion by the Pacific Ocean, surrounded
by acres and acres of luxurious and isolated redwoods, is on the market
for sale and in order to survey it Reuben meets the owner, the
beautiful and worldly Marchent Nideck. The sophisticated, well-traveled
Marchent and the distractingly handsome Reuben are immediately drawn to
each other . For some reason, despite the impervious location and the
remoteness and seclusion of the place, Reuben falls in love also with
the house and wishes to buy it for himself. He ends up inheriting it:
just before being killed by her intoxicated brothers, in fact, Marchent
had made sure to contact her lawyers and have the property passed to
the young reporter who had shown interest and admiration for the mansion
and all the treasures it contained.While trying to save Merchant
from her brothers’ homicide fury, Reuben gets attacked and bitten by an
unidentified wolfish creature. The same creature will kill Marchent’s
brothers but will spare Reuben’s life. After the attack he experiences a
weird hormonal surge, a growth spurt (rather strange for his 23 years
of age) and emotional restlessness. That’s not all: all his senses
are enhanced and he starts hearing voices coming from great distance and
imploring for help. The young reporter seems to have developed special
antennas and an inner radar for people in distress. And most amazingly,
he can smell and track down evil. In matter of days his new sensibility
triggers a physical transformation: not the moon phases, but the pleas
of innocent people in danger will cause him to transform into a werewolf
and rescue them. The mutation will increase the emotional distance
already existing between Reuben and his family and girlfriend. He is a
new man now, fated and claimed by his new nature. Anne Rice’s
spin on the legend of the werewolf bridges her Gothic writer roots with
the religious inclinations and philosophical pondering of her latest
production. The novel features also a strong romantic twist when Reuben
meets his mate in beautiful and sweet Laura. I have rated The Wolf Gift
five stars certainly for the plot, although quite unoriginal in its
take of the ancient wolf-man myth, but mostly for the metaphysical
depths and philosophical issues it raises:

“Our way–the
Western Way–has always been a work in progress. Questions of life and
death, good and evil, justice and tragedy–these are never definitively
settled, but must be addressed again and again as personal and public
worlds shift and change. We hold our morals to be absolutes, but the
context of our actions and decisions is forever changing.”

In her trademark controversial, thought-provoking, and allegorical sort
of way Rice shines a spotlight on what modern society labels as
“monstrosity”, on those fine and shifting ethical lines our culture
draws between good and evil, right and wrong, gift and curse. The
metaphysical undertones and the fetching supernatural plot are a sheer
pleasure to read. At the end of the book we are left on a huge
cliffhanger, literally, but we are only two seasons away from the
release of the anticipated sequel. The Wolves Of Midwinter: The Wolf
Gift Chronicles is due on October 15, 2013.

About Me

Mother of two amazing kids, Miss A™ entertainment columnist, avid reader bordering book-fetishism. Books are my childhood friends, my stress-relief therapy, my wings to fly to faraway lands and distant times, my source of knowledge and inspiration. I simply adore them and consume them aplenty. My "book love affair" began in my early teens with the Bronte sisters, Dickens, Austen, Poe, Conrad, and James. My taste in reading was shaped by those masters and still today, when I read fiction, I appreciate the dark tones, the Gothic touches, and the psychological insight typical of those classics.